Crafty Activities: Over 50 Fun and Easy Things to Make (Step By Step Childrens Craft)

July 2007

Keep your little ones occupiedx during the holidays with Crafty Activities. This handy title features over 50 fun and easy projects, including printing, creative lettering, mosaics, papier mache, origami and handmade cards.

Summer 12

Looking for fun ways to make posters, gift wrap, gift tags, printed tee shirts, arty socks, frames, and a whole lot more? This book takes care of that! Photos of students making more than fifty projects provide easy-to-follow instructions and show students when to seek adult help. There are a variety of techniques and materials, and hours of fun for kids ages 8 and up (with adult supervision).

May 2007

If your children are stuck with something to do on a rainy day, on vacation or during the holidays then this book might be considered something of a godsend. Filled with craft projects for tweenage (8-12) boys and girls, it is sure to keep most children occupied for at least five minutes...

...But hopefully a lot longer than that. This book is actually a compendium of six books in the Step By Step series and comprises of six sections. These are printing, creative lettering, mosaics, papier mache, origami and handmade cards. Each section has a two-page introduction to the subject, and each project is one or more pages, colorfully illustrated with photos of children proudly holding up the items and helpful staged photos with the simple instructions. I was impressed how succinctly each project was described, making it easy to understand and more about the doing part of crafts than having to puzzle through a hoard of words. Even more impressive is that lack of expensive store-bought materials needed. Feathers, paper, paint, oddments, leftovers and kitchen items all come into their own, showing that a trip to town isn't necessary before anything can be made. There are some pretty nifty things to make in here as well, a step up from the similar books I had as a child. Make a mosaic coaster with modelling clay, a picture of a knight in armour with odd screws and washers, print a T-shirt, bake and decorate cookies and make shaker cards to name a few. Many of the projects with a little thematic tweaking would be ideal for holiday preparations, or suitable for making props for school plays. Additionally, if you are a leader of any organisation for children or a teacher you can mine this book endlessly for creative, fun and educational activities. I've seen a lot of books of this type, but I think this has to be one of the best.